I love animals, but in general am not a super-patient person. I'm finding this experience to be way more than I had in mind. I was hoping I'd end up with a pretty passive & easily trained shiba pup, but he is now showing a much stronger disposition than I want to deal with. You've already read about my previous concerns, which still exist, and as of yesterday he exposed his food-aggression and let out his teeth and MANHOOD all over my parents dog (actual dog fight!) when i gave each of them bites of my food (didn't think it would be an issue at 13 wks of age). In the process of trying to break him off of her, he bit my calf and I now have a black/blue swelt. At 13 wks, I'm already feeling more stress than enjoyment. He's absolutely adorable, fuzzy, and even funny most of the time... but he is showing NO interest in pleasing me (which dogs usually do by nature). I realize PATIENCE and GOOD TRAINING can help avert these negative behaviors in the long run, hopefully, but I'm honestly feeling I'm not the one for the job because I like enjoying my pets more than having them rule my entire life with stress. I'm considering that the best thing for him, since he's still young, is to find an experienced SHIBA owner who would be interested in having another, and who has a good home to offer. I'm a huge animal lover and am very particular about homes that pets go to. There are a lot of people on here who seem to feel the same way, so I'm writing here about this concern I have and see what kind of feed back I can get. I hate how animals are moved from home to home.. it isn't fair to them.. and, this is contrary to what I would normally do.. BUT.. now is the time if ever and it may be better for him... which is what is important! I just don't know shiba's well enough, and am not willing to tolerate losing the harmony in my home & life because of a difficult dog. If anyone could promise this negative stuff would all end within a few weeks or a month, then i'd keep at it. But, given what I'm reading on here about shiba's even when they're adults, my guess is, is that these behaviors can last forever. I'm a flexible, flowing kind of person who doesn't like resistance. This dog is resisting the flow in my life because of his extremes. I'm not happy about feeling this way.. I wanted to provide him a forever home! I may have just picked the wrong breed for my situation. I'm willing to admit my incompetency as a shiba-puppy trainer, and would consider allowing someone else to adopt him and do a better job than I will. Please email me at [removed email, no longer relevant]. I live in the Northeast (states). Feedback or suggestions are welcome also, of course!!

I think that is a wise choice. If you don't feel you can be as committed as you need to be, then neither you nor the dog will be a good situation. I wish you all the best in finding your puppy a forever home. Hopefully the network of shiba fanciers on this forum can make it happen quickly.

Did you get your Shiba from a reputable breeder? If so, I would contact the breeder and explain that your Shiba isn't meshing with you. Your breeder may have useful suggestions. You could also ask the breeder to take back the Shiba.

Well I would say you are overwhelmed and as mentioned before you should talk with a trainer or behaviorist to determine the exact issues. I am not sure passive is a good word to describe most puppies. Puppies are a lot of work!

Really assess what you are willing to commit to once you have an idea what needs to be done on your part. If you do not wish to train or get help in behavior modification then maybe owning ANY breed of pet will be a bit much.

As others have pointed out if you don't feel you can be as committed as you need to be, then neither you nor the dog will be a good situation. Really, If that is the case be sure contact rescue to get guidance in safely placing your pet in a new home.

That is a shame that you couldn't work out living with a shiba, best of luck with finding a good home for him. Since you live in the NorthEast, you may want to contact the NYC Shiba Rescue: http://nycshibarescue.org/ They currently aren't taking in new fosters, but they should be able to help you find a new home for him.

What state are you in? Maybe a member local to you would like to have a second puup, or know someone who would want a shiba. I live in Suffolk County, NY (as my signature says).

Sorry to hear things are not working out.
Did you contact your breeder?
Any reputable breeder will take that pup back. In fact like it was mentioned previously it would be in the contract they would want him back to re home themselves. Most would/should give a full refund if it was within a certain period of time. It doesn't seem you have him that long.I would contact them,first for advice and second to see what your options are.
Phil

If it's one thing I learned on this website, it's that shibas have many types of personalities. After having my dog Pebbles for 4 years my personal experience has shown me that they're not your normal dog. It takes alot of patience to attempt to train them. Notice I said attempt because they can be stubborn to the point of frustration. They don't always get along with others as you seemed to have found out . At 13 weeks your pup seems to be quite over the top with his aggression. With my own dog I have to keep a careful eye on her around other dogs because you never know what will start an altercation. I think you're wise to give him up to the right person. This doesn't seem to be the right breed for you. I like the previous suggestion of going back to the breeder if it's possible. Good luck.

Puppies are a lot of work. Have you called a trainer or signed up for any socialization classes since your last post? I know you said you are impatient -- I am somewhat as well. My Shiba bit me a lot as a puppy and really went over the end ( to the point where my folks threatened to get rid of him ). And he turned out pretty fine because I took the time and energy to really train and socialize my puppy and pay for puppy classes.

He ... exposed his 'Manhood'? At 13 weeks, your puppy doesn't even know what adulthood is. He might be a little bit of a resource guarder depending on where you bought him from. If he competed for food at the breeders, then that might be why he reacted so negatively to sharing food. Also -- I would never ever feed a dog table scraps from my own food ( that is promoting poor table manners on the dog's part ), or with more than one dog in the room, especially if you don't know how they'll react together.

Also, a Shiba doesn't exist to please. ;) I have found that you have to gain/earn your Shiba's trust. You have to grow a bond with him.

I just want to point out that I think you are making the right choice in finding a safe place for your puppy. Hopefully you did get him from a good breeder who will take him back.

I do want to point out that I think your expectations of your puppy are very unrealistic. Truly a thirteen week old puppy is only slightly less work than an infant human. That is not just a shiba, ALL puppies.

Dogs do not have a desire to please their owners, until their owners have earned their respect. And that only comes from time, training, patience, and love.

I'm also sorry you are having this experience with your shiba puppy. ya know??? looking at the breed and watching videos of them is the cuttest thing. I wanted one immediately. Then I did alot of reading. All the pros and cons. All the issues inherent with the breed, etc. Something I read somewhere was "a shiba owner must have a good sense of humor". I thought hummm, everyone in my family has that! Only after we got him and saw how stubborn they are did I really realize how it would be. Luckily my shiba has a wonderful temperament and we can put our faces in his dish when he's eating and act like we want to share his chew toys and he just moves away and lets us. Many dogs will NOT do that. They will at least growl a little. So many dogs are protective of their food and treats and anyone or anything that poses a threat will get a reaction similar to what happened to you. But, if you feel uncomfortable with him (and he might sense it), it is a good idea to try to find him a new home. It would be better for all involved. I know you don't want to resort to that, but sometimes it's for the best of the puppy and a decision that needs to be made. Nobody can promise it will get better with time. Sometimes it can even get worse. Being another animal lover, I know how disappointing this can be, but you are making a good decision. Hang in there.

I'm sorry this is not working out for you. It does sound like Shibas might not be the breed for you, but it also sounds like perhaps you haven't considered in general how much work a puppy is. What kind of dogs did you have in the past? Puppies or adults? Because as others have said, dogs are not born wanting to please. They learn it, with some breeds being easier to get to this point than others.

My boy, Toby, was pretty much a monster at that age. It drove me crazy, and I did think, wow, even though I had an Akita in the past, even though I researched the breed, I wasn't really ready for all of this. some days he drove me crazy! But I firmly believed in him too, and was actually more bemused than disturbed by his bad behavior, and now, while I certainly don't have a traditionally good dog, I do have a relatively calm boy.

Talk to your breeder and see if they will take your pup back. If you must give him up and the breeder won't take him back, please take him to Shiba rescue. Also, before you get another dog, you need to think really hard about what you're getting into. Can Shibas be difficult? Absolutely. But so can all puppies, and if you can't commit to that, can't commit to working through the difficulties and giving a dog a lifetime home, then probably you shouldn't get another one. Another one might not be as difficult as the Shiba you have now, but it might be, and it really is not fair to a dog to take them in then decide they aren't what you expected. Clearly you're thinking about this too, and know the difficulty of giving dogs up, but I'm saying that because it does seem perhaps you haven't entirely thought through what a puppy is like, and probably especially not a Shiba puppy...I mean, I don't know why anyone would expect a shiba pup to be passive and easy to train...

All Shibas are different, so I can't say how yours will turn out. I will say mine got a lot calmer--much more than I ever would have believed. It took a couple of years, though, so it's not going to be a quick fix, and in my case, I both admired and was frustrated by his challenging behavior, and frankly, for me it was part of the appeal.

I can't say much for the shiba, since they are all different. However, if you really want to keep the dog, I can recommend a trainer (he lives in Las Vegas, but he emails and works with you through another forum). He has shown some pretty good results, and I follow his book. His name is Adam Katz and his book is Secrets of a Professional Dog Trainer. The website looks suuuuper cheesey, but he's really good. Hope this helps.

I felt the same frustration as you the first few weeks I had my shiba. She kept biting and wouldn't listen and tore everything up. I even took her to puppy class and she still kept acting up. However, as time went on she started showing signs of actually biting less and being more well behaved than usual. She wasn't even the cuddly type at first! She hated being touched and wouldn't even let us pet her. Now, she enjoys being on my lap and being petted for more than 10 seconds lol I know it seems very difficult (all puppies are going to take a lot of work) but they do learn over time and it does get better. You have to find amusement in their stubbornness rather than getting discouraged and upset; trust me, it makes things 100x better to just laugh it off rather than getting upset. It gets better with time as long as you are patient and believe in yourself and your shiba :)

Honestly, if you are already getting frustrated with your puppy, maybe you're not ready to raise a puppy. All puppies will require a lot of patience and time..it's not just shiba puppies that will make you want to throw yourself out a window. Like @shibamistress said, what if you do get another puppy but you get frustrated with it also? It's not fair to the puppy. I believe you should give your shiba pup another chance and try and work with him. If you have tried your hardest and things don't look so great, you should contact your breeder or a Shiba rescue. Good luck :)